Archive for August, 2007
Lunar eclipse Tuesday
by Mark on Aug.26, 2007, under general
For those of you who are early risers, a lunar eclipse will begin at 4:51 EDT on Tuesday morning. According to the NASA graphic on the linked page, mid-eclipse will occur at 6:37 EDT. For those curious about eclipses, the NASA page links to Lunar Eclipses for Beginners, by Fred Espenak.
Parents can be so cruel
by Mark on Aug.22, 2007, under Uncategorized
I have debated posting about this for a week or so now. I found yet another interesting link via del.icio.us. This is from a blog called Boobs, Injuries, & Dr. Pepper. You can understand why I debated posting about this.
The link I found was to a post made in March called Filed Under: Parents 1, Smart-Ass, Teenage Son, 0. When I found the link, I was at work, and I figured it might be NSFW.
I read the post when I got home, and it was definitely worth the read. The author is a mother of three, who’s oldest son is fourteen. The son had been joking with his mom to bring him to the store to buy condoms. The author finally had enough of her son’s jokes, and she retaliated. Hilarity ensued, and ideas now roll around in my head if I get cursed with a brat one day.
Kristen Bell on Heroes
by Mark on Aug.21, 2007, under general
Hersch just posted that Kristen Bell will be on Heroes next season. Variety.com has the full story.
I still have to catch up with what happened in the second half of the first season. Hopefully our DVR is catching the reruns now so I don’t have to watch them in a tiny window on the computer. This is pretty exciting news, as Veronica Mars was (I don’t know that I can say prematurely) cancelled. I really like Kristen Bell, but the third season of VM was hard to digest.
The mechanics of swearing
by Mark on Aug.20, 2007, under Uncategorized
Howstuffworks People Channel has an article about How Swearing Works. It is an interesting read, particularly the part about how the brain stores swear words:
Many studies suggest that the brain processes swearing in the lower regions, along with emotion and instinct. Scientists theorize that instead of processing a swearword as a series of phonemes, or units of sound that must be combined to form a word, the brain stores swear words as whole units [ref]. So, the brain doesn’t need the left hemisphere’s help to process them.
Over the years, I have been able to craft rather complex swears. If I get into a swearing fit, I can just spit them out without much thought. I now know why I don’t really have to think about swearing when I do it; I used to think that perhaps I just swore too much.
I wonder what I would do when I first hear my children swear. I have often wondered about that. Would I scold them? Would making it taboo just make my children do it more? I think that at the very least I would teach my children how to use swear words properly. Swearing at inappropriate times is bad enough, but saying things that don’t make sense is worse to me. I guess I’ll just have to wait and see since kids are not on the horizon just yet.
What’s been going on?
by Mark on Aug.07, 2007, under general
A lot has happened since my last post. Among them are:
- I saw Transformers. I found it quite entertaining, despite the ridiculous computer stuff. The movie accomplishes what it was meant to accomplish, and the CG was terrific.
- I saw The Bourne Ultimatum. While I liked the story, I hated the directing. I almost lost my lunch because of the shaky camera movement.
- The green couches have left our living room, and the garbage man took them.
- Most of the crown molding has found its way to where the walls meet the ceilings in our living room and dining room. There are only two pieces left to install.
- The hallway’s baseboards are finished. There is no purple dog hanging over the stairs.
- The garage is mostly empty after three major weeks of cleaning it. My mom is even helping to sift through the stuff.
- I have started to slowly rebuild my iTunes library after losing it. Of the 10971 items on the iPod, 190 items have been added to my new library.
- My doctor suggested I should have a daily intake of 1,500 calories, split up 40/40/20 as proteins/carbohydrates/fat, however you figure that out. I’ll find out about my cholesterol in a few days.
- I may have found an adequate replacement for Stacey, my hair lady in Palatine. Her name is Amy, and she’s here in Schaumburg. She cuts my hair to my liking, and quickly. Plus, she gives a great shampoo.
- I’m taking a day off on Wednesday to act like a tourist downtown with Chris and the Pizzicas. We’re going to take an architectural tour on the river and lake. I’m hoping to have some good photos.
I’m sure there’s more, but I guess I’d better head off to bed. We’re hitting up Richard Walker’s at 9 in the morning. So much for me sleeping in on my day off.
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